Death Valley Region, Nevada and California

Abstract

Death Valley represents a complex tectonic region that developed at the intersection of three major deformational belts (Figs. 10.1, 10.2): (1) the Late Cenozoic Basin and Range province that is predominately extensional (Fig. 10.3); (2) a diffuse zone of Late Cenozoic, northwest-striking, right-slip wrench fault systems and west to southwest-striking left-slip faults that were active between the North American and the Pacific lithospheric plates (Fig. 10.4); and (3) a belt of Mesozoic folds and thrusts, localized near the hinge zone of the Late Proterozoic and Paleozoic miogeoclinal wedge (Stewart 1978; Fig. 10.5). Figure 10.1 illustrates the present structural setting of Death Valley which is characterized by the presence of both major wrench and extensional fault systems. The map also shows the location of three unique structural features known as turtlebacks which have been quite controversial in their origin (Wright et al. 1974).